


My Beating Heart

by Iske



Category: Linked Universe - Fandom, The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Sky is suffering and I am not pulling any punches, i swear i love him
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-17
Updated: 2020-03-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:07:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23185273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Iske/pseuds/Iske
Summary: “Where are the others?”“I-I don’t know,” Sky mumbled, “I’d say they’re here, uh, in this Hyrule, we’re all just-”“Separated.” Time finished for him.(No you do not have permission to post this work to any other platform)
Relationships: Time (Linked Universe) & Sky (Linked Universe)
Comments: 49
Kudos: 307





	My Beating Heart

**Author's Note:**

> It's a muscle but it's still not strong enough / To carry the weight of the choices I've made
> 
> (Disclaimer: I do not own LoZ or the Linked Universe AU, all credit for the latter goes to Jojo (bless your creative heart and soul))

The shock and adrenaline of battle vanished as quickly as the landscape around them, leaving them falling hard and fast with nothing but the fresh, frostbitten grass rushing to catch them.

Tangled in his sailcloth, Sky tumbled and crashed into the light dusting of snow, his shoulder crunching underneath him. Not far from where he rolled landed Time, grunting under the added weight of a dead bokoblin still hanging off his blade. He moved slowly, adjusting to the fresh aches with measured breathing, as he shoved the bokoblin’s immobile body away from him.

Leaning over onto one arm, Time surveyed the area, his solitary eye careful and steady before landing on Sky who had managed to push himself up, kneeling with his sailcloth bunched tightly in his hands. Sky met his blank stare with an awkward wave and smile, crumpling in on himself as Time quickly looked away with a furrowed brow.

“Where are the others?” He asked gruffly, pushing himself up and off the ground, wincing as his side and back flared angrily.

“I-I don’t know,” Sky mumbled, “I’d say they’re here, uh, in this Hyrule, we’re all just-”

“Separated.” Time finished for him, grumbling with his arms crossed and turning away from his only companion.

With a cool breeze dancing through his hair, Sky found the strength to stand, sailcloth flipping and twisting in comforting patterns between his fingers. Scanning the surrounding area, he saw a rocky ravine and snow-covered peaks, foliage curling and unfolding, desperate to catch some of the sun’s rays to warm themselves.

Around them where they stood were five stones, rising from the ground like hands, they pointed skyward to lazily rolling clouds. They waited, whistling in the wilderness, circling a glowing blue platform that pulsed in time with a stone artifact, watching them from outside the circle, unblinking.

Birds flittered and fluttered, scattering under his gaze and flying far away from the strange, natural memorial and its silence. Tumbling through the air, they turned towards a spiralling staircase of lofts and buildings, lovingly hugging the sides of a towering pillar of rock. Colours vibrant even from a distance, Sky’s heart leapt at the sight of civilisation before them.

“Let’s try over there,” Sky turned to Time, “they might be able to lend us a map, help us find our way around.”

“Hmm.” Time agreed, refusing to meet Sky’s eyes, spinning to eye the slope down and out of the sanctuary.

Sky opened his mouth to speak but froze, feeling the words grapple his throat and choke him. Before he could make a sound, Time had moved on and away without a single glance in his direction.

_“Why do you hate her?”_

If Sky could, he would leap back through time. He’d crawl, scrape his knees, drag himself back to that moment and take it all back if given even _half_ the chance. He’d take whatever he had to in order to fix this.

He waited, still and silent, hoping the sky would open up above and carry him off on a strong breeze. For the ground to tear itself in half and become a gaping maw, wanting nothing more than to satiate its ravenous hunger and burning anger by swallowing him whole. Waiting for something, anything, to tug him away from this silent, stormy anger.

No Goddess listened.

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

Dodging wolves, explosive barrels, flying rocks and a gigantic ogre-like creature had taken its toll on the pair of them. Sky was exhausted, his shoulder aching and pinching at his nerves. Time however…

Casting a worried glance behind him, he watched as Time staggered, pausing to lean against a nearby tree. With arms hesitantly wrapped around his middle and teeth grinding under the strain of his wounds, Sky figured it was safe to assume that Time’s injuries were a lot worse than what he was trying to let on.

Tearing his troubled frown away before Time saw him fretting, he forced it on the tent-like building that appeared instead, sitting idly beyond the fallen logs and rustling pine trees. Hope taking root in his heart, Sky rushed forward, shoulder throbbing with each sway of his arm as he sprinted. Rounding the corner, he checked on Time again, content with finding him trailing not too far behind, before turning to whom he could only assume was the owner of the building.

“Welcome to our stable, good sir! How can I help you today?” The man grinned, auburn moustache flopping with each word.

“Hello sir,” Sky smiled, “my friend and I have had a rough time on the road and I was just hoping you’d have some potions on hand? Maybe?”

The man grimaced, “I’m sorry lad, we had to use our last potion on Traysi,” he cast a quick glare further into the stable, ignoring the petulant response given in return, “if you’re looking to stock up and rest though, I’d check out Rito Village just over the bridge. They should be able to help you.”

With a quick nod and spin on his heel, Sky made his way back over to Time who had managed to cover some more ground in spite of his pain.

“Come on,” He reached out, burying his nerves as he tucked himself under Time’s arm and propped him up, “Rito Village is just a little further.”

“No potion?” Time hissed as Sky guided them forward.

“None, sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

Sky worried his lip between his teeth, desperate to look anywhere else and not at the frown he knew was whittling its way onto Time’s face. With guilt anxiously rising in his stomach, he forced words to come – to fill the desolate silence between the two of them.

“Time,” He sighed, “I’m really sorry about before, I-”

“It’s _fine_.” Time hissed, voice fierce and sharp as Sky felt him go rigid, body locking up and words cutting off the memory at the source.

With a deep breath, Sky tried to balance out the rising swell of emotions building inside him, swallowing back the apologetic babbling that he longed to let loose. Anything, he would say absolutely _anything_ just to resolve this. He didn’t need to know. He was at peace with Time’s bitterness and he _shouldn’t_ have felt the need to ask for reasons; to poke and prod the poor man for _more_.

“Let’s just get a roof over our heads.” Time said in a low voice, exhausted and utterly defeated, as if the younger Link’s soft-spoken words were enough to drain him of years.

Sky tried not to apologise for that too.

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

Stumbling up solid wooden steps, Sky carefully guided Time higher into the Rito’s nest. The guard patrolling the entrance to the small, cozy village had been kind enough to point them further in, unfortunately squashing their hopes for a potion at the same time.

_“We’ve run out I’m afraid,”_ he’d huffed through his beak, feathers tightening around his spear, _“there was a rise in monster attacks recently. We had to tend to our warriors.”_

The inn, the Swallow’s Roost, was apparently the next best thing and right now, listening to Time’s hissing and grunting, Sky would take what he could get.

The afternoon sun blinded him as he came up to the landing, bouncing off the white paint he traced over planks of wood. Looking up and around, Sky sighed in relief at the sight of teal sails, a rope plank leading to a covered rotunda, and a fabric sign proudly declaring their desired destination.

“Are you two alright? You look as though you’ve had quite the adventure.”

Sky wearily turned to the nearest Rito, watching as he approached with wings outstretched, steadying the two where they wobbled in a sad attempt at standing.

“Not, uh, not really. It’s my friend, he needs medical attention and we heard you don’t have potions but maybe a bed? Or two?” Sky grunted as he readjusted his grip on Time, a forearm grinding down on his shoulder, unapologetically exhausted.

“Well, a bed we can certainly guarantee. My sister, Cecili, runs the Swallow’s Roost just here. She should be able to help you get settled for a few nights.”

“Thank you, uh, Mr…?”

“Verla, just Verla please.”

Sky nodded to himself with a strained hum, pointing his gaze downwards to watch the boards pass beneath them as they entered the inn.

Cecili and Verla were very kind, taking Time off his hands and helping him settle on a bed, shuffling back to allow the older man space to slowly remove his armour and expose his injuries. Sky could do nothing but drift in the background, wide eyes following the weave of the blue rug beneath him before lifting to gaze at the exposed beams. Anywhere but Time.

He stood out of place. Knowing he should move to do something, to help, but feeling like he had entirely lost any right to helping Time further.

“Are you okay?”

Sky turned to the Cecili who approached him carefully, unruffled and calm as she entered the eye of Sky’s personal storm.

“Yes, I’m fine, thank you. Just a bit worn out.” He lied, ignoring his angry shoulder as it pulsed pain up and down his arm.

“Why don’t you go settle in too? Get some rest, and don’t worry about the beds – it’s on me.”

“What? Really?” Sky gaped. That seemed a horrible way to run a business.

“Really. Now go on,” she gave him a quick pat on his shoulder, thankfully his good one, leaving her brother to quickly set aside some bandages and follow her out.

Sky unfastened his weapons, carefully removing his armour before sitting down with a sigh, finally comfortable in casual attire. He took his sailcloth in his hands, gently tracing the weave with his fingers in soothing patterns.

They sat in stony silence, Time’s breathing evening out as he relaxed into the mattress, ignoring the way Sky fidgeted nervously on the bed next to him. Sky knew he should speak up, that this quiet could end up killing them both if they weren’t careful, but every time he tried to think of things to say the words would lodge themselves in his throat, grappled by fear.

“Guess I’ll have to heal the old way.” Time groaned to no one in particular, eye set firmly on the ceiling.

Sky sat, briefly paralysed before finding the strength to vault up and off the bed.

“There’s-there’s some bandages and ointments I think? If you want to sit up, I can-”

“Later. I need some rest.”

“But-”

Sky faltered, watching as Time, in spite of his injuries, rolled on his side away from him.

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

He hadn’t been able to stand the suffocating silence anymore. As soon as Cecili had returned, Sky had rushed out in a blur, desperate for a breath of fresh air. He’d bolted up several sets of stairs, barely paying attention to the lofts on his right as he circled up and around the stone pillar. Bumping into a few unfortunate Rito, he mumbled apologies but never stopped.

Where the air was thinner, he felt at home.

Coming to a halt, he doubled over, muscles aching and tender as the day’s encounters took a hold of him. But nothing they could do to him would make him any less thankful for the distance and the endless, blue-grey sky around him. Unfurling like the flora below him, he took the chance to look around.

Looking down and to his right he found a platform that extended out over the landscape, granting it the perfect view of the only way in and out of town. With small openings for the Rito to take flight from and decorative windmills spinning sleepily with lazy gusts of air.

Making his way back down to it and out to its edge, Sky dragged his gaze over the land below and around him, enjoying his tiny, blessed moment of peace before his thoughts rose again, loud and demanding like a clap of thunder. Gripping the banister, he sunk down in a crouch, head bowed low and eyes squeezed shut.

It was just so frustrating.

All these things he wanted to say, and yet every time – _every time_ – he tried, he would fail.

All he wanted was to apologise, to get the heavy weight off his chest, to move on from this stupid fight and forget all about it and not have to have go through the same horrible realisation over and over again that every scar, every nightmare, every ounce of anger and regret, was _his_ fault-

“What’re you doing?”

Yelping and tumbling backwards onto the landing and his sore shoulder, Sky found himself looking up in the wide blue eyes of a young, pink Rito. Looking back at him with a quick tilt of her head, she let out a tiny, quiet coo.

“Are you okay?”

“Y-Yes!” Sky coughed, “Yes, I’m fine, I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you approach.”

“Of course you didn’t! I’m very sneaky.” She sung, dusting off her tunic and settling down beside him, she continued to stare.

“Is-Is there something I can help you with?” Sky murmured, uncomfortable under the intensity of her gaze.

“You looked like you were about to cry.”

Embarrassment racing through him like a static shock, he bolted upright, fighting back a childish pout with a barely less childish glare.

“I was not-”

“You were! Your eyes are all red and watery!”

Turning away from her, he rubbed at his eyes in a flustered panic. He was _not_ going to cry, he was just frustrated because fights are difficult and upsetting, but he was _NOT_ going to cry over this because everything was going to turn out just _FINE_.

...oh who was he kidding? He wanted nothing more than to cry right now.

“It’s alright if you cry, you know! It helps you feel better later!” The Rito girl glanced around before leaning in close and whispering, “I cried yesterday! I wanted to sing with the other girls but they left for Warbler’s Nest without me.”

“That’s terrible,” Sky sympathised.

“It really was. But see? I feel all better now!”

“Mm,” he breathed, the flurry of his startled heartbeat settling, “you seem very happy right now.”

“That’s because I’m talking to you! I’m making a new friend and friends are fun! Ah!” She exclaimed with a quick pout, crossing her wings and frowning, “But I don’t even know your name.”

Sky smiled warmly, gently taking the corner of his sailcloth in his hand, “I’m Sky.”

“Oh! That’s so pretty! My name’s Molli, it’s not nearly as pretty as Sky.”

“I disagree,” Sky hummed with a sniffle, reaching out and tapping her beak lightly, “Molli’s a lovely name.”

“Thank you! My grandpa used to say that too, he said a lot of things.”

“Like what?”

Molli brightened, standing up with excitement as she flapped about wildly. Spilling forth out of her beak in ecstatic chirps and whistles came stories of grand, white birds, snowy peaks, glowing shrines and a brave, blond traveller. It was only halfway through her description of his scars and blue eyes that Sky realised it was Wild she was praising.

“He sounds…charming.” Sky murmured, mind racing with memories of Wild tossing bomb after bomb into ponds to the song of Twilight and Time’s screaming.

“He’s a gentleman! In a weird scrappy kinda way.” Molli giggled.

“Scrappy definitely suits him.” Sky chuckled.

“You’ve met him?!” She exclaimed, wide eyes glittering in the afternoon light.

“Ah, I’m travelling with him at the moment. Or, well, I’m supposed to be. We got separated.”

“That’s rough. But at least you have your other friend!”

Sky couldn’t help the flinch that shook his body.

“I guess.” He mumbled, rubbing the corner of his sailcloth between his thumb and forefinger, temporarily blinded by the sun as it glanced off distant, snow-white peaks.

“Are you guys not friends?” Molli asked quietly.

“I…maybe. I’m not sure. We fought. Kind of.” Biting his lower lip, Sky brought his stumbling speech to a halt.

“I hope you can make up then! Fighting isn’t a lot of fun.” She nodded sagely and Sky had to stifle a laugh as he watched her head bob up and down, reminded of a similar lecture from Wind he’d witnessed just a few days ago.

“No, it really isn’t.”

Falling into a temporary reprieve of silence, Sky took a moment to look around. There was a Rito woman watching them fondly from the entrance to the landing, feathers puffing up in embarrassment as Sky noticed her. Others shuffled back and forth from where Sky could see through wood beams into their homes, preparing meals and shaking out sheets, feathers and dust disappearing into the distance.

“What’s this?” Snapping out of his trance, Sky watched Molli reach out and gently tap the white and blue fabric wrapped around his shoulders.

“It’s my sailcloth. It helps me land safely when I fall from great heights.”

“Wow! Like Link’s paraglider?”

Sky grinned and stood up.

“Molli, it is _so_ much better than Link’s paraglider.”

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

After months once more spent away from home, Kass was back. Coming to a graceful stop outside his village, he double-checked his belongings before taking off, leisurely strolling over grass and wood towards his village. Accordion slung over his back, he observed the changing scenery, watching as the sun danced away behind clouds only to reappear with a mischievous glimmer across a ponds surface. Mazli didn’t quite share his joy over such a little thing, but was happy to see him regardless.

He was home.

Finally, after months away from his wonderful wife and delightful children, he was home.

Kass eagerly made his way up the rope bridges and many steps of his lazy hometown, mind flowing with memories of his family, heart bursting with love as he recalled hugs and smiles. Accordion slung over his back, he waved to familiar faces, silently greeting Verla and Cecili as they carefully remained quiet around their slumbering guests.

Picking up pieces of gossip as he went, he proceeded with a slight frown over his face. Mulling over the news of monsters, he climbed higher and higher, coming closer and closer to the reunion he had dreamt of for days now.

He was interrupted however, by the unmistakable sound of hearty, _hylian_ laughter.

As the hushed, joyous whispers of passing Rito disappeared behind him Kass turned to Revali’s Landing. Playing with Molli on the wooden ledge, was a man. A man with a warm smile, comfortably dressed and gently holding Molli’s wing as she walked across the railing. Mainly adorned in green, he also sported a stunning white sailcloth with blue details, which he held on to tightly like an anchor.

Molli flapped her free wing with a giggle.

“And then! Once I grow into my wings a bit more, Dad said he’ll take me out for my first flight!”

“Oh?” Came the sweetly soft response, “Where do you think you’ll fly to?”

“I’m gonna take off right from here!” Molli pointed at the wood beneath the man’s feet, “and I’m gonna go all the way out there!” She gestured once more with her tiny feathers, bringing attention to a small pillar of rock with a landing of green grass on its head, hidden amongst the trees.

“That should be a lot of fun.”

“It will be! My Dad is gonna be so impressed and Kotts is gonna think I’m so cool she’ll forget all about salmon!” Molli puffed out her chest proudly. Kass couldn’t help but chuckle.

“And Kotts is?” The man asked with a cheeky grin.

“My daughter.” Kass interrupted, biting back another laugh as the pair jumped in surprise, “Well, she’s _one_ of my lovely daughters.”

“Mr Kass!” Molli squeaked, “Please don’t tell Kotts about my plan! I want it to be a surprise!”

“Your secret is safe with me.” Kass grinned, miming locking his beak and throwing away the key.

Molli sighed in relief before hopping off the rail and onto the hylian man’s shoulders, chirping happily as she adjusted herself quite comfortably despite the wince and playful guffaws in protest.

“Mr Kass! This is my new friend Sky! He’s got this super cool sailcloth that lets him float! Sky, this is Mr Kass! He plays the accordion really well and travels everywhere playing it for people.”

“Hello,” Sky smiled sheepishly, “it’s a pleasure.”

“Likewise. What brings a young man such as yourself to our little village?” Kass hummed.

“My, uh…companion and I were separated from our friends. I’m embarrassed to say it but we’re rather lost and we needed to find somewhere to stay and recover.”

“Ah, I’m glad you found your way here then. The wilderness can be rather unkind to those left floundering in its waters.”

“Yes, yes it can be.”

Cooing happily through their conversation, Molli reached out. Small, pink feathers twining strands of Sky’s hair together as she began to braid a sloppy but enthusiastic pattern in his hair.

“Uh? What, um, what’re you doing there Molli?” Sky laughed a little nervously, his red face pulling a laugh out of Kass.

“She’s braiding, don’t worry. It’s a sign of affection in our culture.” He winked at Sky, relishing the way the hylian blinked numbly in confusion.

“Wh-?”

“We’re friends! I said so earlier! Friends braid hair!” Molli declared with finality, leaving Sky quietly defeated. Looking at him now in his silence, Kass could clearly see the exhaustion of his travels in his eyes and the way his limbs seemed too heavy to move in casual, lighthearted gestures.

_Well now,_ he thought, mind sparking like a melody, _we can’t have that, can we?_

“Come now, Sky, Molli,” Kass smiled with soft eyes, wrapping a wing around Sky and guiding him off the landing, “I can assume you’ve had enough fun and frivolity for the day. Why not join my family and I for some dinner?”

Sky stuttered over broken, polite words, leaving Molli to tug on the hylian’s hair and steer him towards the bright blue hospitality of Kass and his waiting, humble nest.

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

Stumbling back to the inn with a generously donated dinner in hand, Sky found himself hoping halfheartedly that Time would still be asleep. Spending the evening with Kass and Amali had been lovely, but it had also rendered him completely and utterly drained. He felt as though he barely had any remaining strength to stand, let alone maintain a brave face in the wake of Time’s ire.

Passing under the wooden arch with a small nod to Verla and Cecili, Sky came to a screeching halt as he found Time fully awake, sat up on his bed and attempting to rub salve into his wounds.

Ah. He’d gone and messed around all day instead of helping Time.

More guilt slammed into him as he hastily crossed the room, soup slopping over the sides of the bowl as he abandoned it on his bed and turned to Time.

“I’m so sorry, here, let me, I can-”

“It’s fine, Sky.” Time grunted.

“Time, please just pass me the salve. I’ll do it, I want to.” Sky pleaded, tired and hand outstretched, he patiently waited for the small bottle settled limp in Time’s grasp. Hesitating - mulling his thoughts over in his busy mind – Time sat silently before bowing his head in defeat. He passed the bottle over without a sound and turned his gaze away further from Sky.

Wordlessly settling down on his knees for a better angle, Sky hesitantly reached out and dabbed the cuts lightly, jerking back whenever he heard Time hiss. He would sit, perfectly still as he waited to be snapped at, and yet no comment was made. Pressing on through the awkward hush, Sky felt apologies bubbling up again inside him, too tired to fight any of them back.

_I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked, I just wanted to know why, the people you hate mean so much to me and I-no, it’s all my fault we’re like this to begin with. Why you’re like this, why you’re hurt. Not just you, but all of you, all those scars and nightmares, it’s all my fault, and I could tell it was a sore topic but I still-_

With trembling hands pressed against tender wounds, he refused to fight back against the memory of a snarl and a one-eyed glare, practised swings getting sloppy and that one stupid, destructive question-

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

_“Why do you hate her?”_

_Time had turned, sword falling as he blinked slowly at Sky. The younger Link faltered, reflexively tightening his grip on both Fi and the cloth he was using to clean her blade._

_“Pardon?”_

_“I just,” Sky mumbled, head racing and mouth struggling to voice his thoughts, “I know that you dislike the Master Sword, and Hylia too. I just wanted to know…why.”_

_Scowling, the older hero swiftly turned away from Sky and back to his training, fluidly practising his swings with a far more force than before._

_“It’s not important.” He grunted through a downward slash._

_“It is.” Sky insisted, setting his friend and sword aside and intertwining his hands, holding himself together as he slowly felt the need to fall apart and let his thoughts tumble over tongue without tact only grow, “You hold distaste towards them for a reason, and I can’t imagine you’d hate blindly.”_

_“So?” Time huffed, still refusing to look back at him._

_Sky froze, hesitating where he sat on the fallen log, glad for the privacy away from the others as he collected himself, grip tightening in his lap as he pointed his gaze between his feet._

_“The Master Sword, she’s…she’s dear to me. Given what I know of her, I just can’t really see how…how you could hate her so much when she’s never been anything but loyal and kind-”_

_“Kind.” Time scoffed._

_Sky looked up with a frown and a tentative anger; gaze locked onto the older man as he dropped his stance and turned on the younger._

_“That sword, and your Goddess, are nothing but cruel omens of fate.” He said, voice carefully void of the growing storm that built in his lonely eye._

_“That’s not true!” Sky rose with a snap, gentle features sharpened by mounting frustration._

_“I don’t know about you,” Time continued, “but Zelda and I were children when fate found us. When this damnable destiny sent us off to fight Ganon and save the land - to finish Her battle – and we barely had a chance. It didn’t matter if we were kids, Hylia and her Sword didn’t care.”_

_Words clogged his throat, eyes awash with a ruddy sunset. Anger welled in a small voice, spinning daggers into ideas. Fate. Time blamed fate, blamed the Master Sword for being a bystander when Sky knew for a fact that Fi struggled more than ever. Wishing to have form again if only to take the blows on their behalf. He blamed Hylia for locking them in an eternal, bloody battle. He blamed this damned cycle of Link after Link after-_

_Oh._

_“It’s hardly their fault!” He cried, cursing his voice for cracking under the weight of his growing storm, “It’s not like they asked for this ‘Ganon’ to be made! For Hyrule to be endangered!”_

_“So what?” Time growled, giving in to an old, familiar rage, “It doesn’t change the fact that She sends literal children out to fight Her fight, to protect the land that She never could. You’ve seen the others; Wild, Hyrule, Legend, all of them! This cycle never ends because She failed to finish Her own fight. She has Her precious children clean up Her mess instead. If She isn’t to blame than who the hell is?”_

_Sky stood frozen, wishing that the wildfire that had been so happy to dance under his skin and set him alight hadn’t just be doused with bone-chilling rain. That they hadn’t been replaced by the drowning realisation. That he knew exactly who Time should hate above all else. The answer, building and budding like a rose with stinging nettles for thorns in his throat, ripped his voice to shreds around the single, lonely word._

_Me._

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

“Sky.”

The murmur shattered the memory into pieces, throwing Sky back into the present. Eyes wide and hands flinching away from Time’s now dressed wounds, he looked up at the older Link, settling back onto the legs tucked under him.

“I’m sorry.”

A hush ran through him, body numb as he blinked up at Time.

“I know that what I said upset you – that the two of us will never exactly see eye to eye over…” He trailed off, the furrow in his brow growing deeper, “but that doesn’t mean I can treat you like this. I’m sorry I’ve been-”

“It’s fine.” Sky whispered, furiously clamping down on the confessions that threatened to spill over his lips. He looked down and squeezed his eyes shut, firmly freezing over.

“No. It really isn’t. The Master Sword is important to you, we all know that, and yet I still carried on like that. I shouldn’t have-”

“ _Time_. It’s fine.”

He could feel a confused eye lock onto him but he didn’t dare look back up. Shrinking in on himself, he gripped the familiar fabric of his sailcloth in his lap, shoulder locking up with a shrill screech.

“Sky, what’s wrong?”

_Your anger is warranted, it’s not your fault. It’s fine. I know it’s my fault, I know I caused all this, so if you must be angry than it’s fine. Take it out on me if it makes you feel better, I-_

“Nothing.” Sky mumbled, shuffling away and climbing onto his bed. He ignored Time’s outstretched hand, choosing instead to fumble with the lukewarm soup and place it down on the floor.

“Sky-”

“It’s nothing, really Time. I…you don’t have to apologise. It wasn’t your fault.”

Wordlessly, he tucked himself under his blankets, shoes kicked off and falling to the floor with a hollow thud. He buried himself, desperately hoping the thick layers would be enough to block out both the way he could feel Time stare at him and the storm raging in mind. Rain lashing out in waves of guilt behind his closed eyelids.

The bed behind him rustled with a sigh.

Logically, he knew that telling Time would help. To have this pain out in the open instead of caged inside him, rattling the bars of his rib cage like a frenzied animal. But…

_It was his burden to bear, because it was his mistake after all._

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

Eyelid fluttering open, Time watched as the mound of blankets huffed and trembled, the noise of a tiny, sleep-addled whimper catching his attention. He wanted to get up, to pull the blankets back and check to see if Sky was okay, but he couldn’t. He felt as if he’d lost the right somehow. So instead, he settled for laying frozen with his eye locked onto the tendrils of sandy, blond hair that fanned out of Sky’s crumpled pillow.

Sky had every right to be angry with him. His behaviour had been childish – if they had been ambushed in the wilderness they would’ve been decimated, they would’ve fallen apart with their lack of communication. Time had known that he had to apologise and he had, but…

He wasn’t going to lie.

Hearing Sky speak with his voice like ice, slicing through Time’s blundering apology, and then watching him turn his back and hide away, he…it stung. It stung a lot more than Time ever thought it would.

Sky was always so open, eagerly spilling over with love for both Zelda and the others. Always happy to ask all the right questions to get the Links to brighten under dark skies. He was always such a good listener; so calm and put together.

To see him so frigid, so tense…it unsettled Time.

He couldn’t tell why either. Had he not accepted Time’s apology? Was he still mad about the fight? Possibly, but if his words were to be believed, than it would be some other matter that Time couldn’t see.

Another whimper cut through his thoughts.

He laid still as a statue, watching as Sky rolled over under all the blankets. A hand appeared, poking out from under a sheet, sailcloth creased in its desperate grip.

Time sighed and readjusted himself, grunting into his pillow as his injuries flared under their bandages. He settled down with his eye firmly trained on where Sky laid buried. He might not get a lot of sleep but right now, he vastly preferred the peace of mind he would gain from making sure Sky got the rest he needed.

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

_Flashes of black loomed over him, cascading sheets of inky water flowed over his head and down his back. He couldn’t move, could barely breathe, please don’t notice me-_

_Dark mass ripping in half, insides lined with teeth, a brief glimpse of red, of orange. Whispered words suddenly screamed like a clap of thunder._

**_…an incarnation of my hatred shall ever follow your kind…_ **

**_…a blood-soaked sea of darkness…_ **

_The mass above him now surrounds him, scales crackling with each shift, sharpening, ready to cut straight through his bones-_

**_CURSED_ **

_He’s gripping his head now, his eyes are squeezed shut now – if he doesn’t hear it, it won’t come true. It won’t-_

**_CURSED_ **

_He could hear Hyrule scream somewhere in all the darkness. Could hear Time yell in pain, could hear Legend cough, all air escaping him, there was an explosion and oh Goddess, Wild-_

**_CURSED_ **

_Demise laughed like thunder, the sound threatening to split his head in two, skies overcast, rain plundering the land, red pillaging the lives that came after him, lightning flashing and carving and all this pain it was his fault-_

**_CURSED_ **

Bursting forth from his blanketed coffin, Sky tumbled off the mattress and onto the floor with a yelp. The cold dread of the nightmare clung to his bones, even as he took the time to ground himself in the feeling of the wood beneath him and the way his sailcloth bunched up in his frantic fingers. He listened out for the early morning birds, soaring above him and beyond the canopy of teal drapes.

Squeezing his eyes shut in frustration he continued to listen and notice –finding himself again in soft sounds. Behind him, he heard the rustle of sheets.

“Sky?” Time rasped, “Are you alright?”

He didn’t dare reply, bowing his head lower, hoping it was enough to disappear out of Time’s sight. The careful shuffle of feet towards him told him it wasn’t. He curled further in on himself as he listened to Time crouch down beside him with a stifled groan.

“You should go back to bed.” He whispered.

“Not until I know you’re okay.”

Sky huffed a small laugh but didn’t lift his gaze.

“Was it a nightmare?”

“Yes.”

“Do you-?”

“No. It’s fine, I…”

Sky shook his head, bolting upright and onto his feet. Finally, he looked down at Time, resolve faltering as the concern in Time’s eye made his fears and guilt scream louder.

“I’ll go see if they’ve managed to get any potions in.”

He moved to step around Time but found himself stopped by the hand latching onto his wrist.

“Sky, you can talk to me. Any time.”

He didn’t trust himself to speak, so Sky bit his lip and gave a sharp nod before tugging himself out of Time’s hold and rushing outside, straight into the welcoming embrace of the frost-bitten morning air.

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

He’d set about scouring the local grocers first before descending the flights of stairs and exiting Rito Village. Traversing over the bridges and flecks of wilderness that lined the way to the village, Sky stopped in at the Rito Stable, hoping that by some miracle a potion or two had come in overnight.

Nothing.

They’d received word that a travelling merchant should be arriving tomorrow, or the day after, possibly carrying with him the ingredients to at least a handful of potions. For now, all they had were a few basic vegetables and fruits.

“If you’re looking for something to help ease the pain, you’d best try a hearty radish,” Galli hummed from next to his half-groomed horse, “if you can’t get your hands on one of those, then I’d try to find a hearty salmon. I’m pretty sure they live in the ponds up by Rito Village.”

“And eating one of those will help?” Sky blinked, running a hand through the mane of a gentle mare, only _slightly_ regretting his lack of shoes.

“Guaranteed! Potions are pretty much the best thing but never underestimate a good meal. Now, I reckon a few of the travellers ‘round here have picked the radishes, but that salmon I mentioned should still be in supply.”

“But wouldn’t the Rito have used them up tending to their warriors?”

“What did I just say, kid?” Galli groaned, reaching out and mussing Sky’s hair roughly, “Potions are the best thing! It’s what people turn to most often, so the Rito would’ve used up all their potions first before even thinking of using some fish! Anyway, even if they did cook up some salmon, there should still be plenty left. Those things breed like rabbits.”

Sky shoved Galli’s hand away with a soft laugh, the horses whinnying in reply.

“Thank you, Mr Galli.”

“Gah, no, don’t. No ‘Mr’ here, do I look like an old man to you?”

Sky tilted his head to the side, the perfect picture of innocent confusion.

“Am I supposed to answer that honestly? Or lie?”

_“Hey!”_

Ducking under the hand flying out to ruffle his hair once more, Sky spun on his heel and bolted back towards the rope bridges, laughter carried on the breeze. He could hear Galli yelling behind him but he decided to play it safe and continue on, grinding his teeth as his shoulder protested the fast pace.

Sidestepping the guard with a wave, he pushed on until he came to his first two ponds. Well, they had a strange grass in them…but no fish. Of any kind. He pressed on, growing closer to Rito Village. He shoved any thought that wasn’t about salmon, or the cooking of, firmly out of his head.

Sky had failed Time before, had failed them all before, the least he could was spend the rest of his journey alongside them apologising for it. Even if it was just with a roasted salmon.

The final pond granted him its blessing. It was full of ruddy fish, lazily swimming back and forth in their shallow pool. Well, that solved one problem. However, he wasn’t Time or Twilight. He didn’t just have a fishing rod on hand, and he didn’t exactly want to have to go all the way back and grab Fi…he doubts she would appreciate being used a skewer.

“Well,” he shrugged, “when in Wild’s Hyrule, I guess.”

Rolling up his sleeves and pants, he found himself only slightly thankful that he left his shoes back at the inn.

_Ah. I wonder if Time managed to get back to sleep, or maybe he couldn’t after I woke him._

Sky pushed the memory to the back of his mind and the surging guilt that came with it. He knows he’s done wrong, he knows he’s failed so many people on multiple occasions – oh Goddess, _Legend_ – but he could make it up to them. He had to, he had to be able to because if he couldn’t-

Furiously blinking back the rising tide of tears in his eyes, Sky slipped into the pond. The fish startled, darting to the other end of the pond and watching with wide eyes as he steadied himself in the cold waters.

“By _Hylia_ ,” he cursed, reaching back and tugging his sailcloth tighter over his shoulders.

He waded to the edge of the knee-high depths, toeing further to confirm that his eyes weren’t tricking him and that it did indeed drop off into deeper waters. He’d have to submerge himself up to his chin in order to catch a single fish.

Tossing up his options, Sky decided it would be far better to wait for the fish to adjust to his presence and linger closer. Then! He would strike.

He sat, water lapping at his hips as he swayed his feet in slow, rhythmic patterns. Closing his eyes and listening to the trees rustle above him, he let his mind drift off on a breeze. He really hoped that a hearty, healing meal would be enough of an apology for Time – or, well, a good enough start on all the apologies he had yet to deliver.

Crestfallen, he drooped.

He had so much to make up for, so many scars he would never be able to heal, and he knew there was trauma despite the pride that tried its best to bury it. It had been his job to defeat Demise, and he had. He’d saved Skyloft, saved the Surface, but it wasn’t enough. He’d failed to save the future – failed to save all those demolished childhoods.

Strangling a sob before it could even breathe, Sky leaned forward, resting his face in his hands. He longed to be able to discuss this with Time but…Goddess, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to handle it if Time did confirm his worst fears, once and for all.

That he was a failure.

That this was his fault.

Hearing that from himself was torture, but to possibly hear that from someone else? From someone he saw as family? He…it felt like a death sentence. As if whatever fractured relationship they had would completely and utterly shatter, and Sky would never have another chance.

He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. He wished Zelda was here. She always knew what to say to make his worries wash away; she knew how to cut through his messy mind and help him see clearly. Zelda would say to talk to Time, to properly communicate and get a clear-cut answer instead of all these worries building up inside his head.

But the sheer thought of _actually_ telling Time.

Something slimy brushed against his ankle and he screeched, sending the fish flying back to the other end of the pond, wriggling uneasily in the wake of the sudden noise.

Sky groaned and crouched down.

He had to be brave, he was made of the damn _spirit of courage_ and if he really felt it was the best choice - Zelda-approved even - then he would have to talk to Time and tell him and apologise.

_But…_

Sky groaned louder. Goddess, why was this so hard? Just catch the salmon, cook the salmon, have Time eat the salmon and recover, and then tell him all about how whatever childhood trauma he had from his adventures was Sky’s fault! Easy!

Dragging his hands down his face with a sigh, he turned to watch the fish creep around the edges of the pond.

_Hardly_.

“Sky, fledgling? What are you doing in the pond?”

Sky scrambled up, eyes wide at the sudden appearance of someone behind him. As he twisted however, his foot slipped, sending him toppling backwards into the deep water he’d aimed to avoid.

With one last yelp, he disappeared below the water’s surface in a mighty splash.

He reappeared with a loud gasp and a frenzied splash, the icy chill of the pond seeping into his clothes and biting at his bones. His shoulder locked up at the temperature change and strain put on it as Sky kept himself afloat.

“Oh Sky, I’m so sorry,” Amali apologised, barely fighting back a giggle.

Paddling to the edge and dragging his sodden form out of the waters depths, Sky slicked his hair back and out of his eyes, fixing Amali with a shaky smile.

“You poor thing, you look like-like a drowned fox!” She burst into chirps of laughter, doubling over with her feathers all ruffled in amusement.

“I don’t d-doubt it.” Sky shivered with a sheepish grin, shaking as much water as he could off his drenched limbs.

“What on earth were you doing? It’s far too cold for a swim.”

“Well, I didn’t exactly _intend_ to go swimming but _someone-_ ”

“Oh, I had no part in this! You shouldn’t have been in the pond at all!”

Sky frowned with a playful pout, taking his sailcloth in his hands and twisting it, squeezing out as much water as he could.

“Well? What were you doing?” Amali mused, eyes still sparkling with mirth.

“I was _trying_ to catch a salmon,” Sky sighed, “Galli down at the stable said that a good meal could help people recover faster.”

“That is true,” Amali hummed, a wingtip tapping her beak in thought, “it’s a pretty basic way of recovering and not a lot of people really go in for it anymore. Potions take less time and effort. But why were you…?”

Sky grimaced as he watched realisation dawn on her face.

“Oh fledgling, if you wanted some food for your friend, all you had to do was ask.”

“I-I know, but I wanted to make it myself, it’s,” he stuttered, cold and shame seeping in, “it’s meant to be an apology.”

“Ah,” Amali chirped sadly, “Molli did mention something about a fight.”

Sky worried his lip between his teeth, rubbing his arms up and down, trying to find warmth in the friction. By the Goddess, this place was _freezing_ , even with the sun out in all its glory.

“Alright, come on,” Amali smiled gently, coming up next to him and wrapping a wing around his shaking shoulders, “let’s get you by a fire and then I can show you how to cook the single, most impressive, apology meal ever.”

Sky stumbled under her gentle steering, eyes as wide as saucers as he processed her words. His head snapped around – neck cracking with the speed – to look up at Amali in numb awe.

“You’ll help me?”

“Of course! What other cook-pot were you going to use?”

“I…oh.” He shifted closer to the green Rito, burrowing further under the warmth of her wing.

“That’s what I thought,” she grinned smugly before pausing and looking around the small clearing, “Sky, where are your shoes?”

“The inn.”

“…Elders, give me strength.”

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

Time hadn’t been able to get back to sleep. He’d laid back on his bed, his injuries a dull, stiff ache in his abdomen, and he had waited with one eye open. Listening out for Sky’s return.

After Goddess knows how long, he gave up.

He’d wrapped himself up as best he could, snatching his wallet and ocarina up and looping them around his belt, before setting off into the cool air.

Unable to fight back the shiver that raced down his spine, he clung to the central, rocky pillar, sapping off its sun baking as he climbed higher and higher. Had Sky gone this way? Or had he gone outside of the village? No, he wouldn’t have been so reckless.

Rounding the bend, Time bumped into a small, feathered mass of excitement. No. Scratch that. Five feathered masses of excitement. The group giggled and squealed in surprise as they tumbled over one another at Time’s feet.

“Sorry mister!” A bundle of red chirped.

“Hello mister Hylian, sir!” A little blue bird sung.

“What’s with the scar?” Time turned to answer the purple child’s question but from one question came a flood of many others.

“Woah! You have markings! What do they mean?”

“What’s this?” A yellow wingtip poked his ocarina.

“Are you Sky’s friend?”

“Uh.” Time mumbled, baffled for a brief moment before conjuring a bemused smile, “This scar is from battle. My markings are also from…battle. That’s my ocarina, and yes. I am. My name’s Time.”

“Wow! You must battle a lot Mr. Time.” Came the awed whisper from the little green Rito.

“I do, unfortunately.”

“Girls?”

Time tore his gaze from the gaggle around his feet and up to the large, blue Rito that had appeared behind the young audience. Adorned with a white scarf and a feathered headdress on the left of his head, he beamed down at Time with a welcoming smile.

“Why hello there, I don’t believe we’ve met?”

“No, we haven’t,” Time smiled back, “I’m Time.”

“A pleasure to make your acquaintance, I’m Kass, the lovely father of these five young ladies.”

His daughters giggled around his feet, bouncing back and forth excitedly.

“Likewise. I’m looking for my companion, Sky – he’s about this tall, has a white and blue sailcloth?” Time gestured awkwardly, a sudden ache leaving him wobbling uncertainly.

“Yes, I have met Sky, but I’m afraid I haven’t seen him today.” Kass frowned with a slight tilt to his head, “Is he in trouble?”

“No, I was just looking for him.”

“Hmm, well I haven’t seen him up this way, perhaps he ventured below?”

Time sighed, so maybe Sky _was_ reckless enough to head out of town… _without his shoes_. Rubbing his temple with a frown, he leaned against the central rock of the village.

“Do you need some help finding…?” Kass trailed off.

Time glanced over, watching the large Rito frown, clearly confused, at something or someone behind him. Pushing himself upright, he whirled around, barely catching the flash of vivid, green feathers vanishing behind the pillar down further.

“Wh-?”

“Ah! That was my darling wife, she’s rather shy so I’m afraid you won’t be able to meet her.” Kass laughed stiffly before wrapping a wing around Time’s shoulders, “Now, while you wait for Sky to return, perhaps you could help me entertain the children?”

“I don’t know…” Time hummed, glancing back to double-check that he wasn’t hallucinating a white and blue sailcloth peeking out from the rock.

“Girls, come along, we’ll play up at the shrine today,” Kass continued, ignoring both Time’s hesitance and his daughters huffs of disappointment, “Now, tell me, do you play? Or do you sing?”

“Uh, I play.”

“Excellent! We shall be a lovely duet.” He chirped, pressing Time forward with a steady wing, his daughters trotting after him with an excited chorus of chirps.

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

Amali ducked out from behind the pillar, thoroughly scanning the area with narrowed eyes.

“Are they gone?” Sky whispered, slowly shuffling around the bend, arms full of butter and wheat.

“Looks like it,” Amali breathed a sigh of relief, turning to Sky with a wink, “let’s keep going little chef.”

“I’m hardly a chef,” He scoffed sheepishly.

“You will be when I’m done with you.”

“That…sounds slightly threatening, but alright.” Sky beamed, readjusting his grip on the ingredients with a wince. Amali paused, assessing the young man with a frown.

“Are you injured?”

“What? No, I’m fine.”

“No, you’re a bad liar. Where are you hurt?” She crossed her wings, fixing him with a concerned glare.

“…my left shoulder.” Sky admitted with a sigh.

Amali eyed him silently, the scrutiny of her gaze piercing through Sky uncomfortably as he stood with his lips sealed shut tight. Finally, she looked away, closing her eyes with a firm nod, yellow ponytail bouncing with determination.

“Two serves of salmon meunière.”

“What? But-”

“Do not even try to argue with me, I have five daughters. One serve for you, and one for your friend. Understood?”

“Won’t that take longer?” Sky mumbled.

“Not with two chefs it won’t, and besides,” she grinned, “Kass should be able to keep your friend busy enough.”

“Do you two think you could move your plotting elsewhere?”

Spinning around to follow Amali’s gaze and the sound of an unfamiliar voice, Sky found himself looking up at the dark figure of another Rito, with glossy black hair swept over his face and dark feathers. He looked from Sky to Amali with an unimpressed scowl.

“Harth!” Amali sang, “Perfect timing!”

“Oh?” Harth quirked a sceptical eyebrow, but before he could cross his wings Amali reached out, snatching the ingredients from Sky’s hands and shoving them into Harth’s feathers.

“Sky here is injured, so could you be a darling and carry our things for us? Thank you!” She grinned, looping a wing around Sky’s arm and dragging him away from Harth’s indignant squawking.

Sky threw a quick apologetic smile over his shoulder before disappearing around the bend, leaving the dark Rito to scowl angrily and stomp after them.

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

“Now that’s an interesting instrument.”

Time turned the ocarina over in his hands, glad to be off his feet and gifted Kass’ gigantic scarf. A cold breeze swept through him, toying with his hair and vanishing with a shiver. He looked up at Kass as the Rito organised his own instrument.

“I’d say your own instrument is far more interesting.” He smirked, eyeing the way Kass stretched it out experimentally before pushing it back together with a noisy sigh.

“Ah, my accordion is rather grand, I must admit. But I’ve never seen something quite like yours.”

“It’s an ocarina. It’s pretty simple.”

“Can we hear you play?” One of Kass’ daughters piped up.

“What does an ocarina sound like?”

“What songs do you know?”

Time laughed lightly, “I know a lot of songs. What kind would you like to hear?”

“Your favourite!”

Smiling, he lifted the ocarina to his lips and played an achingly familiar tune. Mind swimming with memories of comfort and red hair, of days of hard work and a fishing trip that ended in _mild_ disaster and bubbly, beautiful laughter. Ah, he missed Malon.

Tune blending with a rush of wind, Time lost himself to the escape of the melody, repeating notes over and over with numbing fingers until he got it just right. He faded off to a finish, but the song stuck with him, mind adrift with memory as he lowered the ocarina into his lap.

Applause broke out around him, hitting him like whiplash. Time found himself back on the wooden floor, surrounded by feathered company.

“That was beautiful. What is it called?” Kass murmured with a delicate patience.

“It doesn’t really have a name, it was passed down through my wife’s family and used to calm horses and livestock, but I’ve always called it Epona’s Song.”

“Livestock? Like a farm?” Kass’ pink daughter frowned, feathers scrunching up around her beak.

“Yup, a peaceful farm.”

“Aren’t farms messy? And smelly?”

“No more than you, my dear.” Kass joked, earning a playfully outraged squawk and swat to his wing.

Time let out a whisper of a laugh, watching the five girls gang up on their father and surround him. Hearing the wood creak in the cool air, he snapped out his stupor and glanced behind him, half hoping to see a white and blue sailcloth fluttering the breeze. There was nothing but empty space.

“Would you mind playing that song again?” Time turned back to look at Kass, “I would like to try and see if I can play alongside you.”

Listening for a second and finding himself greeted with nothing but the absence of a cautious footstep, Time shrugged. He swallowed back a sigh and smiled.

“Of course.”

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

Sky coughed, hobbling to the entrance of the rotunda, desperate for fresh air. It was safe to say that his respect for Wild had gone up tenfold – cooking was no joke. The scratch of clawed feet came up behind him, followed by the light pat of feathers on his shoulder.

“And that’s why you add butter first.” Harth stated, his voice completely and utterly devoid of sympathy.

“Got it.” Sky rasped, the dry, rough edges of his throat catching his voice and forcing another bout of coughing.

“It’s alright, fledgling!” Amali called from back by the cook-pot, wings fanning the smoke out and away from the charred salmon, “We still have plenty of salmon to work with.”

Sky nodded to the floorboards almost deliriously before pushing himself up, his left shoulder creaking and grinding as he gripped the railing for support. Tugging his collar away, he winced at the sight of the blue and purple curdling his skin.

“What’d you do? Shoulder a Talus?” Harth quipped with a tinge of concern, startling Sky.

“Ah, ha, not really…” The dark Rito shrugged and prodded the sky-dweller back into the rotunda.

He watched mournfully upon re-entering the kitchen as Amali discarded his mistakes and splashed the pot with cold water.

“Don’t worry about it, fledgling,” she chirped, “it’s all a part of the learning process.”

“Feels like this is going to be a _long_ , learning process.” Harth grumbled.

“You know,” Sky began, “you don’t _have_ to stick around. You can leave anytime you like.”

“And miss this?” Harth gestured to the lingering, acrid scent of burnt salmon with a smirk, “No thanks.”

Sky rolled his eyes with a small pout, choosing to fold his sleeves back up from where they’d slipped down past his elbows instead of quipping back. Readjusting his beloved sailcloth from where it hung around his waist, he approached the chopping board once more. Missing Harth and Amali as they both blanched at the healed scarring running up and down his forearms like lightning strikes. Blinking herself out of her stupor and back to the lesson at hand, Amali cleared her throat with shaky enthusiasm.

“Okay then, ready for round two?”

“Yup! Slice the salmon, crush the wheat, chop the vegetables, melt the butter, and then mix!”

“Close enough.” Harth laughed, earning him a quick smack across the back of his head.

“Just focus on chopping the vegetables and salmon for now, we’ll worry about the rest when it’s time.” Amali smiled, ignoring the scowl thrown her way.

A cold breeze rushed over the railing and through the gaps of wood, cutting right through Sky and making his hold on the knife slip with a shiver. His shoulder locked up; the salmon sliding out of his grasp and leaving his finger to take its place under the knife’s edge.

“Ah.”

“What did you do _now?”_ Came a grumble as Harth fixed his hair.

“Just nicked my finger a bit, it’s fine!” It really was, to be honest. He’d had far worse.

“Are you sure you know to handle a blade? Mr Swordsman?” Harth chirped with a biting smirk.

“Don’t you have a bow to re-string?” Amali huffed, looking over Sky’s shoulder to check the wound, nerves easing as she saw it was shallow.

Harth grumbled and turned away, patting down his pockets as if looking for something, unable to come up with any response. Green feathers puffing happily, Amali dug around in a pot and procured a small bandage, gently wrapping it around Sky’s finger.

“There you are! All better.”

“You keep bandages in pots?” Sky smiled, bemused.

“Where else am I supposed to keep them? In my bed?”

“No, that’s fair.” He laughed, allowing a pair of wings to gently settle on his shoulders and spin him around, finding himself facing a focused Harth.

The dark-feathered Rito reached up and pulled forth the braid Molli had given him the day before. Sky was happy to see it remained mostly intact - save for the few loose hairs that had escaped during his sleep. Harth grabbed the end of it and – grasping a braid of his own - deftly unfastened the ruby accessory at the end.

Sky watched as it snapped onto his braid, relishing the flood of warmth that danced over his skin and sunk deep into his bones as soon as it did.

“You keep shivering like that and you’ll end up lopping off your whole hand.” Harth grunted.

“These are…?”

“Rubies. They have inherent heating properties.”

“Oh,” Sky threw him a grateful smile, “thank you!”

Turning away with a content hum, Sky missed Amali’s wide eyes almost popping out of their sockets as she stared at Harth with barely concealed anger. He looked back at her with blank confusion, earning him yet another smack over the head.

“What the _flock_ woman?!”

“You!” She pointed at him fiercely, “Are on thin ice!”

“Are you two okay?” Sky frowned, glancing up from his half-gutted fish.

“Perfectly fine!” Amali panicked, glaring at Harth as soon as Sky turned back to his work.

He tuned out the continued bickering behind him, noting a few arguments about tradition and how – according to Harth at least – they were ‘out-dated’. Oh well, all he had to do was focus on the salmon meunière and getting Time all healed up. Then, maybe when it’s all done, he’ll have worked up enough courage to actually tell him…everything.

Gut churning, he furiously pushed those thoughts away and focused on nothing but cooking.

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

“Does anyone else smell something burning?”

“Ah. I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about.”

“You sure?”

“Of course, someone’s probably just cooking some breakfast.”

“Hmm.”

━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

It took _a lot_ longer than Sky thought it would to assemble the meal, but standing back and looking at it now, he could tell it was worth it. Every little accidental nick and burn had amounted to what looked – and smelt – like an incredible meal that Sky wholeheartedly believed would be able to heal Time’s wounds.

“Hey, that actually looks edible.” Harth hummed playfully.

“You did a good job, Sky!” Amali cooed proudly, reaching over to ruffle his hair.

“Thank you, both of you,” he beamed, “I really needed your help for this.”

“You really did,” Harth agreed with a smirk, “you almost filleted yourself.”

“What _matters_ ,” Amali huffed, “is that it’s all done! Now you can give it to Time, right?”

_“Time?_ ” Harth scoffed with a raised eyebrow.

“His friend.” She explained before turning back to Sky, “Alright, you go deliver your meal while I finish up yours. Hopefully, my husband and children haven’t worn him out.”

“They went further up, yeah?” He asked, gingerly picking up the plate and frowning as he felt the pain from his shoulder shoot down his arm.

“Should have, now go! Off with you!”

Laughing as he was shooed out of the small kitchen, Sky took off. Soaring upwards over the creaking steps and embracing the chill of the breeze, enjoying the way the ruby hanging by his left cheek would surge with warmth to fight it off.

He still wasn’t entirely sure how to talk to Time. He hadn’t scripted any sort of apology, he hadn’t even come up with points to discuss, but he felt stronger. He felt like his mind had cleared, shifting from a rampaging storm to rolling clouds. He still felt slightly unbalanced, unsure; he still dreaded the thought of spilling his guts. Of leaving himself so raw and vulnerable and open to the impending, justified hatred of his fellow Link.

But he had to.

That thought was so sound, so solid…it was just enough courage to keep him moving forward.

Dashing past swaying pine trees and sheepishly side-stepping a light purple and pink Rito, Sky staggered to a stop at a small intersection. The sound of hearty notes accompanied light whistling tunes, dancing along the gusts of wind swirling around and through the village.

Looking down the wood and rope bridge Sky found a familiar mop of blond hair. Sitting off on the top of an isolated pillar and its platform, was Time. The older Link watched on, bundled up in a thick scarf as Kass guided his daughters through a ballad, limply holding his own instrument in his lap.

Swaying where he stood, Kass glanced over and down the bridge. He smiled, noticing where Sky waited, frozen, for some sort of cue to approach. Turning back to his audience, Kass carefully brought the ballad to a close, bowing gracefully as both his daughters and Time applauded.

Sky could see Time talking, could hear the noise of conversation, but couldn’t make out any words. Regardless, Kass had gifted him the perfect chance.

All he had to do was take it.

“I’ll have to try your accordion out some time.” He heard as he inched closer across wooden boards.

“Oh, by all means! I would love to teach you.”

Coming to a stop at the very edge of their gathering, Kass turned towards him, eyes twinkling as he slung his accordion over his shoulder.

“Sky! What a lovely surprise,” the blue Rito trilled, “I trust you slept well?”

“N-Not really,” He laughed nervously, keenly aware of Time turning, unyielding gaze locking onto him, “but that’s alright.”

“You’d best get to bed early tonight then.” Kass tutted, wagging a feather playfully at him before turning to his children, “Come along girls, let’s go see what your mother is up to.”

Stepping to the side, Sky watched the group leave, shooting a wobbly smile to the children as they ducked past. He kept his gaze on them until they vanished beyond the rocky tower and then for a little while longer. Swallowing back his collapsing courage, he turned; palms sweaty with newfound anxiety as he found himself under Time’s patient stare.

He had to do this.

He had to.

He...

He couldn’t bring himself to be the first to speak. He stood there, still as a statue, praying that Time would understand and break the ice for him.

“I was wondering where you’d gotten to.”

Sky jolted, fumbling the plate.

“I-I was just-”

“Doing some shopping?” Time’s eyebrow quirked up, looking pointedly at the plate in his hands.

Puffing out his right cheek with a pout, Sky frowned and stepped closer, “I was fishing. Then I was cooking. I…I made you this.”

He held the meal out to the older Hero, forcing himself to not drop his gaze. Time looked from Sky to the meal with flattered surprise.

“You…can cook?” He murmured as he took the food out of Sky’s now shaking hands.

“I can now.”

His answer startled a laugh out of Time, the sound shattering the painfully tense air between them. They walked together to the edge of the landing, hanging the legs out over the side and leaving them to sway in the breeze. Pulling out the knife and fork Amali had lent him from his belt; Sky passed it to Time and wordlessly watched him cut into the ragged, salmon fillet.

Gripping the boards of the platform, Sky waited for Time to finish his first mouthful. His shoulder clicking under the strain of the anticipation.

“This is good.” Time finally announced, eye wide with awe.

Blinking with wide eyes before collapsing into a heavy sigh of relief, Sky turned away. He sat relaxed, happy to see his efforts pay off, and happier still to see the sparkles of magic around Time’s injuries. He let himself drift while Time continued to eat and heal, eyeing the blue, pulsing light of what must be a shrine. He could see the memory of Wild’s grimace, he could even recall the exact bitterness and childish frustration that he’d spoken with. A glare carved into his face, shadows from a dancing flame darkening his eyes, the exhaustion of the memory…

He hoped that Wild was okay. That they were all okay and sat somewhere safe, relatively unharmed.

…

Oh, who was he kidding, at least _three_ of them would be injured.

“That was very nice Sky, thank you.”

Grimace vanishing, Sky watched Time shuffle the plate off his lap. It was amazing to see how a few simple ingredients were able to bring so much colour back to Time’s face. Even in the small movements he made, Sky could see the lack of pain in each pull of muscle. It worked!

“It was no problem, really! It’s the least I could do.”

“Mm,” Time hummed, turning and tucking a leg underneath him, fully facing the younger Link.

“Um? Hi?” Sky smiled awkwardly.

“Hello, are you okay?”

He froze.

“O-Of course.”

“You’re a bad liar.” Time huffed.

“I…I know.” Sky laughed, small and sad.

Time waited in silence, wonderfully patient as Sky tripped over all the words he wanted to say. Everything – every scar and nightmare – that he had yet to apologise for.

“It’s…meant to be an apology.” He admitted quietly.

“What is?”

“The food, uh, salmon meunière. That’s what it’s called.”

“Okay,” Time paused, “why are you apologising?”

_Start at the beginning._

With a sigh, he carved himself open, hurricane winds stripping bare and slicing through every defence.

_Moment of truth._

Pushed down onto his knees, he could feel himself clinging to his fear and shame like a sword. He buried it into the barren earth and left it there.

_Tell him._

“It’s my fault.”

There’s an empty moment between them where nothing exists but the air ruffling his hair and the swaying ink painted over the inside of his eyelids.

“Do you mean the fight? Because Sky, that wasn’t your fault. I-”

“No.” Sky dragged the solitary word up and out of his heart, “No, this isn’t about that. It’s…it’s about what it made me realise.”

Time didn’t dare speak, giving Sky room to breathe and think.

“I…I never had to fight Ganon like the rest of you. I’ve told you, I fought someone… _something_ else called Demise. That…that I won.”

“You have. You did.”

“That’s a lie.” Sky whispered, feeling the fleeting peace of a warm meal and quiet company stagger and fall, disappearing somewhere out of reach. Opening his eyes, he could see Time stiffen beside him, eye wide in disbelief.

“Demise…is alive?”

“No,” Sky laughed, harsh and wet like thick sheets of rain, “not anymore. But I certainly didn't win.”

“I don’t-”

“I was supposed to defeat him, and that would be it. Everyone would be safe but…here we are.”

“Ganon isn’t your fault Sky.”

“Demise was Ganon’s predecessor.”

The words hung, heavy like fog. Sky took advantage of Time’s paralysed silence and continued.

“I fought him. I killed him, but I…I just didn’t move _fast enough_. Hell, I just didn’t _move_.” He could hear his voice crack, but the sound was so far off, drowned out by the white noise of a memory and a growling voice and a _curse_ , “He got the last word. I stood there, and he cursed me. He cursed us.”

Again, Time didn’t speak.

“An incarnation of his hatred will be reborn alongside those with the blood of the Goddess,” a shaky breath in; a poor attempt to steel himself, “and the spirit of the Hero. A constant cycle throughout the centuries and I just _stood there_.”

More silence.

“I just stood there and let him-I let him hurt you, _all of you_ , and any future us, _forever,_ and all I did was _stand there-_ ”

He’s no fool. He’s seen the way the other’s hide the most damaged parts of themselves, shielding it behind quips or silence; misdirection is an art.

He’s seen the way Wild will vanish into himself sometimes, lingering just out of reach. How he’s woken from nightmares, never screaming, only ever sobbing with rushed, panicked breathing. Death and guilt flooding his eyes when he thinks Sky is asleep and can’t possibly see him. He’s seen those scars and known the only possible aftermath of those is death.

He’s seen Wind falter at bridges and push himself. Never once resting for himself and only ever when ordered. He’s seen the way he curls up, eyes far off and mourning someone long gone. Hands all over his telescope and lying awake at night, watching his pirate charm for any sign of life. Separated and lonely and so far from home.

He’s seen the way Hyrule looks over his shoulder. He’s heard of his home, has stumbled past a clearing and heard the sobbing as Hyrule broke down onto Legend’s shoulder. How he’s hunted and haunted; burdened and chosen by the Gods. He’s seen how he always helps everyone else before himself, how he devalues and belittles all his hard work.

He’s seen how Twilight stands at dusk, watching the horizon with an empty space beside him. How he sits waiting for someone to fill it; eyes tracing his own shadow over and over until it hits him that nothing will change it. A shadow is just a shadow. He sees the way he looks at Time and Wild alike and sees the guilt and agony that arises each and every time he bites his tongue, silencing himself.

He’s seen how Warriors, so loud and charismatic, will sit late at night when he can’t sleep. How he’ll watch with keen eyes, studying the others as they lay unconscious, as if daring one of them to spring up and attack. To catch him off guard. He’s seen the weariness in his shoulders, the formalities drilled into his skull; he sees the exhaustion hidden by a vibrant blue scarf.

He’s seen Legend. Bitter and mean like a shield. Dragged out again and again for the Goddess and the land. Having to live with the constant weight of the world on his shoulders. He’s seen the way he writes before bed too, sombre and silent. How he freezes when he sees a seagull or the ocean. The way he walks at the back of the group and hums a tune to himself, eyes pointed down to the ground.

He’s seen how Four fights himself. How some days he is happy and whole, while other days he hugs himself by the fire - trying to keep himself from falling apart. He’s seen him split, searching for berries and finding four copies of his friend. He’s never seen a magic like that but by the way Four tumbles apart and stitches himself back together, he knows that it had to have hurt. That maybe it still does.

He’s seen Time. He’s seen his bitter anger and resentment. He’s seen the way he’ll stand on watch and stare up at the moon for hours on end. He’s seen how he wakes in the mornings, sitting up and quietly checking over each Link around him, grounding himself in their idle conversation. He’s seen the way Time will shrink in on himself when he thinks he’s alone – how young and lonely he looks when he does.

Sky’s not a fool. He knows they’ve suffered. That they’ve hurt and screamed – pushing themselves on because who else was going to stand up and help Zelda fight Ganon? Who else was going to wield a legendary sword and clean up Sky’s mess?

If he’d just _moved_ then they wouldn’t have had to endure the absolute worst.

Time grabs him by the shoulders and pulls him closer, holding him against his chest and it’s only then Sky realises just how much he’s shaking. How he’s crying; wailing and babbling his incoherent apologies into Time’s collarbone.

He tries to breathe but his nose is clogged and his throat is conspiring against him. All he can do is sob and curl into Time’s side.

Sky loses track of the minutes between his tears, all he knows is the weight of his sailcloth around his waist, the wind rushing through the pine trees and the hand carding through his hair in slow, steady patterns. He’s lulled out of his panic, his heart slipping off his sleeve and back into his chest. Thunder and lightning have given way to a hesitant rainbow and the sweet smell of the wilderness after rain.

“Sky, this is not your fault.” Time said, burying his face in the sky-dweller’s hair.

“It is!” Sky wept, “I should’ve-if I’d just-”

“No, it isn’t. Demise didn’t have to curse us, but he did and that is _not_ your fault. His choices are not your fault.”

It all sounds so logical when Time says it but the weight has such a firm grip on his shoulders and it calls itself his mistakes. It’s so hard not to believe it when it whispers in his ear and wears a familiar face.

“Sky, please believe me. Whatever your enemy does, they do it because that’s the choice they’ve decided to make. Their choice is not your burden to bear.”

“But-”

“You didn’t curse us Sky. You didn’t hurt us. I know you and you would _never_ hurt us.”

He sounded so sure.

It caught Sky so unawares that, for a brief moment, it felt like he could breathe again. Hands scrabbling for purchase, he latched onto the front of Time’s shirt. His lungs stuttered, evening out their pace as the salty rain running down his cheeks slowed their storm to a dying drizzle. His shoulder was aching and his chest was burning and he just felt _so sore_. But he was safe. Time didn’t blame him. If Time didn’t blame him then the others wouldn’t either, right?

“The others-”

“They’d agree with me. They adore you Sky, they’d never hate you.”

He can see them behind the inky curtains of his eyelids.

Wind is bundled up under Sky's sailcloth, mumbling in his sleep by the dying fire’s light after a long dinner of gripping tales of swashbuckling pirates and turbulent seas.

Hyrule whittles next to him, his movements clumsy but enthusiastic, his smile beaming like the sun, tripping over himself with sheepish satisfaction as Sky takes his hand in his and gently leads him back to camp.

Legend walks alongside him with a careful closeness, wary but wanting, and Sky cherishes the small moments of vulnerability Legend allows himself.

Warriors slings an arm over his shoulder, mussing his hair with a loud laugh and teasing Sky’s dopey smile as he daydreamed, wrapping his scarf around the both of them with a cheeky grin.

Wild passes him a warm bowl of soup, sitting beside him and falling asleep on his shoulder, swapping his cloak with Sky’s sailcloth and parading around the campsite proudly.

Twilight sits across from him, asking after his Zelda and childishly ducking behind him, tail between his legs, to hide from Time’s theatrical ire, holding his sailcloth like a shield.

Four pokes and prods for more information about his home, eyes gleaming like a rainbow as Sky holds the Master Sword out for him to examine, silently resting by his legs as they watch the others antics.

Time falls back on him with a dramatic sigh, giving into gravity with a smirk, the both of them watching as the others trickled off to sleep before sitting down on their bedrolls and digging through their packs, Time showing off all his masks and Sky trying to carve a new one for him.

He could believe it.

In that one moment, he knew he’d never be more certain.

They might be angry; they might yell and turn a cold shoulder but by the Goddess these boys and men were good and brave and mighty heroes and they would never ever turn on him.

“They wouldn’t.” Sky whispered, shaky but true.

“They wouldn’t.” Time echoes and solidifies.

He pulls Sky tighter against him and holds him there, quiet and comforting as the sun slowly pushed the shadows back with every rung it climbed, soaring higher and higher into the blue sky.

“I’m sorry for…for everything that happened to you.”

“Don’t be,” Time hummed, “what’s done is done. I survived, and now I get to live.”

Sky can see them all. Soldiers and travellers alike, all children born into the catastrophe that lies sleeping in his shadow. But living, despite it all.

“And now we get to live.”

**Author's Note:**

> Wild then shows up and proceeds to throw bomb after bomb at Harth for accidentally getting engaged to Sky while Time cackles unsympathetically in the background.
> 
> This is the first fic I've written in years, I used to write a lot throughout high school but my love for my old fandoms died off and I lost all inspiration. But my love has been reignited!! Linked Universe is so refreshingly delightful that I couldn't _not_ find a way to contribute somehow.
> 
> Angst has always been my forte however, so sorry about that.
> 
> So here's to kicking it all off with a bang!!
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed this fic, I'm sorry if it seemed a little all over the place - the plot ran away from me a few times - but I sincerely hope it was still a delight to trek through! Feel free to leave a comment or a kudos if you feel so inclined and I'll see you around!
> 
> (Also if you see any mistakes please let me know!! I just had to post this, my brain could not handle looking at it any longer)
> 
> ((ALSO THE TITLE AND NOTES AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS CHAPTER ARE FROM THE SONG "ASHLEY" BY HALSEY))


End file.
